


Father-Son Camping Trip

by CloakedSparrow



Series: Collected Bat-Family Stories [36]
Category: Action Comics (Comics), Batman (Comics), Detective Comics (Comics), Red Hood and the Outlaws (Comics), Red Robin (Comics), Super Sons (Comics), Young Justice (Comics)
Genre: Bat Brothers, Bat Family, Camping, Damian defends some fish, Family, Family Drama, Family Fluff, Friendship, Gen, Jason has a potty mouth, Minor Clark Kent/Lois Lane, One Shot, POV Bruce Wayne, Past Character Death, Some Humor, super family
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-07-26
Updated: 2018-07-26
Packaged: 2019-06-16 14:04:47
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,923
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15438684
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/CloakedSparrow/pseuds/CloakedSparrow
Summary: When Batman met Superman, he was mistrustful. When Bruce Wayne met Clark Kent, he was suspicious. Between saving the world together, forming the Justice League, and helping each other as they raised several kids, they became friends.As their children became friends and they started to spend more and more time together, being guests at each other’s houses, taking a pair of their kids somewhere together, and supporting each other when one of their children threw them a curve ball became regular occurrences. They were exposed to many of the same interests through their children. They were exposed to many of the same concerns.Eventually this leads the Wayne family (at least, some of them) and the Kent family to go on a joint father-son camping trip.





	Father-Son Camping Trip

**Author's Note:**

> I'm trying to think of what to call Conner's superhero identity in this series, since he and Jon both exist in this universe. I'm going with the idea that Conner was Superboy, same as in the comics, but recently passed the title along to Jon and took his own name, sort of like each of the previous Robins now have their own hero identities. If anyone has any suggestions, I'm open to hearing them.

When Batman first met Superman, he was mistrustful. Not that anyone should have been surprised by that, but it wasn’t just his usual mistrust. A virtually invulnerable being couldn’t be expected to understand human frailty or the human condition. It would be far too easy for the alien to buy into his own legend. To feel that he was without flaw or failure. To simply do as he saw fit. 

It would be all too easy for him to lose touch with whatever shred of humanity his adopted parents had instilled in him. 

Even when they had to work side by side, even when they formed the Justice League together, that mistrust remained. 

When Bruce Wayne first encountered Clark Kent, he was suspicious. The man presented himself as just a big, guileless farm-boy. Someone who wanted to make a difference and was simply taking a shot in the big city. It made Bruce wary. He wasn’t sure if the alien thought humans were just that simple or if he honestly believed himself to be that.

The first time Bruce heard Lois Lane sass Clark and he sassed her right back, it gave him a glimmer of hope. The first time Clark outright acted like a jerk, Bruce couldn’t help but be pleased. Maybe the guy was a little human after all. He didn’t let his guard down entirely -he rarely did, outside of his children- but he decided to give Clark a chance.

When Bruce saw the opportunity to plan ahead for the possibility of Superman going bad, he took it without hesitation. It wasn’t that he had anything against Clark at that point. He just wasn’t about to risk being caught off guard by a Rogue. Ever. Even one that had once been an ally. 

Even one that was becoming something close to a friend. 

When Dick entered the picture, everything changed for Bruce and for Batman. He wasn’t living alone. He wasn’t training alone. He wasn’t fighting alone. He wasn’t making decisions alone. And the decisions that he made didn’t affect him alone.

Watching Clark interact with Dick made Bruce hope that he’d never have to use his plan to take the other man down. It made him think that maybe he should start trying to be more open to relationships outside of work (with either job). He was reminded that there was more to life than allies and enemies. After all, Dick was never just an ally or even just a partner. 

He was Bruce’s son. 

When Clark’s son was born, Bruce was there to congratulate him. He was there to share in the other man’s joy. He was there to tease him that the hard part was yet to come. After all, Bruce already was a father, he knew what the job entailed. 

When Dick outgrew Robin and settled into Nightwing, Bruce was proud. As was Clark; he was also honored that Dick had chosen his new identity as a hero from the stories he’d told him. Celebrating his son’s first big success as his own hero was the first time Bruce invited Clark to join him in anything that didn’t involve saving the city or the world. 

When Jason died, a part of Bruce died with him. Clark stood by his side as he mourned at the funeral, grieving quietly along with him. He talked to Dick when Bruce couldn’t. Between the two of them, and Alfred, Dick was able to move beyond his grief. He was able to live in a world that had taken his brother. 

Bruce would never be able to thank Clark for that. There were no words to express the gratitude he felt when he saw that his eldest was going to be okay. Clark never asked for any gratitude anyway. He'd only wanted the boy they'd both grown to love to be alright too.

When Bruce finally stopped holding Tim at arms length, he found himself in one of the most difficult predicaments he’d ever been in. He loved Tim, he wanted to teach him, to guide him, and take care of him. But Tim wasn’t his. They were stuck in some sort of limbo, where Tim simultaneously was his child and wasn’t his child. Clark pointed out that Dick had named his later ego after a character Clark had told him about. He spoke about loving, cherishing, teaching, guiding, and protecting the boy despite the fact that he was Bruce’s son and Clark knew he had to let Bruce raise him his way. 

Clark helped Bruce learn how to love a child and care for them when you weren’t the one calling the shots.

Later, when Clark discovered that Lex Luthor had created a clone that -for all intents and purposes- was both of their child, Bruce was there again. He was there to help Clark see the clone as a young boy. One that needed a father to guide him. He was there to tell him that adopting a child was the same as having one. That he could never love anyone more. 

When Conner’s personality turned out to be a little more human than Clark’s own, Bruce was there to offer advice on how to raise a child that was very different from you. He showed him how to find the points on commonality as well as how to respect and even appreciate the differences. After all, both were something he had plenty of experience with. 

When Jason returned from the dead, Bruce didn’t know what to do. He’d never felt such conflicting emotions in his life. The Red Hood had done terrible things -all in the name of good, but they were still terrible. He wanted to treat him as a Rogue. He wanted to treat Jason like the angry teenager that he was. He wanted to take care of his son. Clark didn’t know how to help, but he listened and told his friend he’d be there if he was needed.

When Conner and Tim became best friends, Clark was thrilled. Bruce was concerned. He was happy Tim had a close friend, especially one he didn’t have to keep his second identity a secret from. He was also worried that Tim might not have it in him to face his friend if he turned bad. He also wasn’t sure which boy would influence the other more. Clark said it didn’t matter. If it came down to it, they would take care of their boys no matter what. Bruce didn’t worry quite as much after that and Conner and Tim turned out to be good for each other. 

When another clone was discovered, one that wasn’t quite right, Bruce helped his friend learn how to take care of a child you had to hide. One that didn’t exist as far as the greater world was concerned. He helped him learn how to balance the secrecy so it didn’t feel like shame. He showed him how to guide a son that didn’t necessarily want your help. He showed him how to help a child that didn’t want to live in your shadow. He showed him how to avoid the mistakes he'd made with Jason; the ones that had cost him his son.

When Bizarro and Jason became friends, both Clark and Bruce watched over their developing friendship with wary optimism. They both knew it could go either way. When their sons appeared to bring out the best in each other, they shared their relief. 

When Conner died, Bruce did his best to help Clark with his grief. He knew how hard it was to lose a child. He knew how much harder it was to move on after suffering that loss. He reminded Clark that he had to be there for his other sons. Once again, he helped his friend make sure he didn’t make the same mistakes Bruce had. 

When Damian entered the picture and Bruce had no idea what to do with the boy, Clark was there to remind Bruce something he’d taught Clark in the past. That you didn’t love a biological child any differently than an adopted one. Bruce knew what to do after that. Again though, he didn’t thank his friend.

After Conner came back, Bruce helped Clark deal with the shock and confusion. He was plenty familiar with that too. Clark didn’t thank him either. 

They never did. 

When Damian and Jon met and instantly hated one another, Bruce wasn’t surprised. Clark was. While they disagreed on whether or not their children needed to be friends, they did agree that they needed to be able to work together. When their plans to teach them how to do just that resulted in the boys learning to work together _and_ becoming friends, both men were pleased. 

They started to spend more and more time together as their families grew. Being guests at each other’s houses, taking a pair of their kids somewhere together, and supporting each other when one of their children threw them a curve ball became regular occurrences. They were exposed to many of the same interests through their children. They were exposed to many of the same concerns. 

When Damian’s pet cow was ready to give birth, Clark came over. He and Bruce stayed up all night to monitor his youngest son’s pet. When the calf appeared to have gotten stuck, Bruce asked when he should call a vet but Clark simply told him to pull the calf while he held Bat-Cow. Their clothes were covered in fluids that Bruce didn’t want to think about, but they saved both mother and calf. Damian and Jon would be thrilled, so both men felt it was worth the long night. Bruce loaned Clark some clothes to return home in and sent his laundered clothes over later. Clark mentioned that Lois appreciated it, but neither of the men actually thanked one another.

Between their children’s friendships and their own growing friendship, they ended up doing many things together that had nothing to do with Batman and Superman. Such as their first father-son camping trip. 

Since their youngest sons had become best friends, Clark suggested that he and Bruce should take them camping. Bruce didn’t quite see the appeal but Jon’s enthusiasm made Damian curious and he wanted to spend more time with his son outside of fighting crime, so he agreed. 

The trip had been terrible all around. Bruce hated being incommunicado and Damian hadn’t been thrilled with the overall experience. He missed his technology, his luxury items, and his pets (he didn’t say it, but Bruce suspected he missed his family as well). Then Clark heard Conner back home, punching down a tree and gone to investigate. It was one of the very few times that Bruce envied Clark’s abilities. He would have loved to be able to check on his kids back home too. Especially when Clark returned to report that the reason Conner was so upset was because Tim had been badly injured back in Gotham.

Naturally, the trip was cut short. 

Which was why Bruce thought it was a little crazy for Clark to bring up the idea of trying a camping trip again a few months later. 

This time, however, Clark had a slightly different suggestion than before. 

“Let’s bring _all_ the kids.” Clark smiled, clearly thinking this was a brilliant idea. “They’ll have so much fun together and we won’t have to worry about any of our kids back home. You can get Kate and Luke to keep an eye on Gotham for a couple days, right? And Barbara and Alfred will be around if they need any support.”

Bruce thought that could either be an excellent vacation or two days of a putting up with a different sort of fighting than he was accustomed to. However, Clark’s kids all had super hearing and had overheard Clark talking to Lois about the idea. So Bizarro told Jason, Conner told Tim, and Jon told Damian. Before Bruce could reach any decision alone, his kids were expressing interest. He couldn’t say no then. 

Dick and Cassandra had their own lives in Bludhaven and decided to pass on the trip. Fortunately, this time they wouldn’t be completely incommunicado, so Bruce felt okay with that. But to his surprise, Tim and Jason cleared their schedules for the camping trip and Tim arranged for Barbara to cat-sit. More surprising was that Damian was actually showing his version of excitement as Alfred helped him prepare for it. 

Being in the woods with his overly optimistic friend, a developmentally and linguistically challenged clone, two angry teens who had returned from the dead, one clinically depressed and notably OCD teenager, one often rude and violent teenager, and an excited eleven-year-old with superpowers was either going to be very entertaining or make Bruce wish he was back in Gotham dealing with thieves and drug dealers.

Jason, Tim, and Conner showed Bizarro, Damian, and Jon how to set up the tents while Bruce and Clark checked the area of woods they were camping in and gathered firewood. If Bruce set up a few traps, he figured that probably wouldn’t surprise any of the others. Then, Clark suggested fishing. It appeared to be going well -no one was fighting and everyone had their lines in the water, at least- until Jason’s line started tugging. 

“Uh, I think I got one.”

“That’s great!” Clark smiled at the young man. 

Meanwhile, Jon cheered him on. “Yay, first catch!”

“So...what the hell do I do?” Jason arched a brow. “Just reel the line back in?”

Bruce offered his son some advice. “Not too quickly, or the line might break. Pretend you have a criminal at the end of a grappling line.”

“You’ve never been fishing before?” It looked as though Clark hadn’t considered that. 

Bruce kept his expression the same, but he was amused by the surprise. Considering that his kids were excellent at following examples, Bruce supposed that was fair though. They’d each watched their friends set and cast their fishing lines and just mimicked what they’d done. His boys hadn’t been trying to keep their lack of experience a secret, they just hadn’t realized fishing might be a little more complicated than it sounded in books or looked in video games and movies. 

Each of the Wayne children looked at Clark in response to his question. Jason with disbelief, Tim with inquiry, and Damian with mild disdain. 

“We’re from Gotham City,” Jason finally stated, as though that were all the explanation needed. 

“And we’re rich.” Damian added as though speaking to a simpleton. “We typically _buy_ our food.”

While they were explaining their lack of fishing experience, Bizarro waded into the water, reached down, and quickly grabbed the fish still attached to Jason’s line. He then handed it to his friend. 

“Here. Red Him want?”

“Thanks, buddy.” Jason took the fish with a smile and then shot Bruce a look that clearly asked what he was supposed to do with the squirming wet animal. 

“I think it goes in the basket.” Tim directed his brother’s gaze toward a large fishing basket Clark had brought. Bruce confirmed. 

“Why a basket?” Jason dumped the fish in it, despite his clear confusion. “Wouldn’t a cooler make more sense?” He looked at Tim. “How long before it starts to go bad?”

While Tim was answering, Bruce noticed Damian frowning at the basket. Bruce glanced at Clark and lowered his voice. “Brace yourself.”

Clark frowned, but before he could ask what he was supposed to be bracing for, Damian started glaring at each of the older males. “We’re letting the fish suffocate?! How is that humane?!” 

“Wait, they _suffocate_?” Jon looked horrified. “I thought they just...died.”

“ _How_?” Damian demanded of his friend. He shot him a look as though he were worried for his mental abilities. 

“Damian.” Bruce’s tone was all the warning his youngest needed to know he couldn’t treat his friend that way. 

“I could always shoot the fish?” Jason offered offhandedly. 

“You brought a gun?” Bruce asked immediately. His own feelings on firearms aside, they had an eleven-year-old with them who wasn’t used to weaponry. 

Jason rolled his eyes. “Relax, there’s a safety. Here, I’ll show you before I take care of the fish.”

“Don’t you dare!” Damian directed his glare at his big brother. 

“What, it’d be quick and painless.” Jason replied, still not seeming too bothered by his youngest sibling’s ire. “Doesn’t that solve your inhumane problem?”

Damian put his hands on hips and continued glaring up at his big brother. “Todd, release the fish back into the river at once!”

Jason frowned down at his brother. “Okay, first, you don’t bitch at me like you do Dick. I’ll toss you in the river if you need to chill. Second, we brought fishing rods and twenty pounds of gourmet frankfurters. What the hell were you planning on eating while we’re in the middle of the fucking woods?”

“Language!” Jon called, his tone a little too pleased to be chiding. Jason looked at him as though he didn’t quite know what to make of the response. The boy just watched him with an amused grin. 

Clark cut in to explain. “Jason, if you could _not_ drop the F bomb around my kids, I’d appreciate it.”

Bruce’s second eldest looked confused. “Really?” Jason gestured over Jon. “But he’s old enough to know better, isn’t he?”

Clark nodded to acknowledge the point but didn’t relent. “Yes, but he can still be influenced by his friend’s cool big brother.” He smiled calmly as he explained. “So please watch your language around him.”

“Okay. Sorry.” Jason still looked sightly perplexed by the notion but clearly respected Clark enough to follow his wishes without an argument.

“Its fine.” Clark looked and sounded like it was no big deal. It was handled and that was that. 

Damian continued to look livid. “The fish is still suffocating!”

“And you still need to eat!” Jason replied, looking at his little brother as though he were crazy. “Seriously, what was your plan coming here?” He looked at Bruce. “Did _you_ bring any vegetarian food for him? ‘Cause I sure as hell didn’t.”

Bruce had left all of the food packing to Alfred. He had no idea what they’d brought. He realized that had been a mistake, considering two of his three sons present had special diets. Although he doubted Alfred had failed to take that into consideration when packing. “I’m sure we have something suitable for him.”

Jason turned to look at Tim. “Timbers?”

His little brother decided to respond, but looked like he wasn’t sure it was a good idea, even as he did so. “I brought Viana frankfurters. They’re vegan and they don’t need to be refrigerated. Damian can have some. Plus, Alfred packed trail mix, vitamin gel drinks, some sandwiches, scones, and potato salad for us, too.”

“See?” Damian pointed toward Tim. “We don’t need to suffocate any fish.”

“Dad, I’m freeing the fish!” Jon announced before he tossed Jason’s fish back into the water at super speed.

“Jon, that was Jason’s!” Clark sounded torn between amusement, scolding, and confusion. “You don’t throw back someone else’s fish without asking, son.”

Jon apologized. Jason waved it off with a laugh, but Damian frowned at his friend. “There’s nothing to apologize for! If you change your mind on murdering someone, do you apologize to your cohort for wasting their work?!” 

“Uh, you and me are the only ones here who have actually murdered anyone, brat.” Jason seemed torn between irritation and amusement at his youngest brother’s response. “How is your friend supposed to respond to that? And just so you know, _most_ people see a huge difference between taking the life of a fish and that of a human being.”

“Well they should!” Damian either misunderstood or was going to launch into a rant. Bruce would have bet on the latter. He was right. “Fish never steal, or rape, or manipulate, or lie, or murder! People do! Those people are-”

By this point, Bruce decided he needed to step in. “All right, _stop_. No more talk of murder, both of you. And Damian, stop yelling. People come to the woods to relax.”

Damian looked around. They were the only people there. In fact, they hadn’t seen anyone else since they arrived because Alfred actually owned the land they were on. “Who am I going to disturb?”

“Besides us?” Conner asked, his brows still raised in surprise at the scene he’d just witnessed. 

“Conner.” Clark’s tone was firm but not cruel or angry. “Be nice.”

Bruce really hoped this wasn’t how the whole trip was going to be. “Jason, Damian doesn’t have to eat the fish if he doesn’t want to. Tim, thank you for sharing the vegan hot dogs with your brother and consorting with Alfred before we came here. Damian, you don’t have to fish any more, but if Jason wants to, you have to accept that. You can’t demand respect unless you’ve earned it.”

“We could always catch and release?” Clark suggested to the two youngest boys. One of whom was still glaring, the other looked torn between wanting to fish with everyone and not wanting to suffocate innocent animals or upset his best friend. 

Before Damian or Jon could respond, Conner turned to Clark. “Dad, can Tim and I go for a hike?”

Clark blinked in confusion at the sudden change in topic before responding calmly. “I don’t see why not.” He looked from his son to Bruce and then Tim. “If its okay with Bruce, of course, and if Tim’s done fishing too.”

“Tim isn’t fishing.” Conner grinned as he glanced side-eyed at his best friend. “He tied the line to a pebble when no one was looking so it would appear like he’s fishing. He’s probably been solving crimes in his head this whole time.”

Bruce looked at Tim curiously while Clark glanced down at his line, seeing past the water to the end. He tried to hide his grin when he saw that his son was right. 

Tim looked at his best friend with something close to a smile. “I thought you were having fun.” His tone suggested he’d been wiling to put up with the ruse if that had been the case. Now that he suspected it wasn’t he was a little disappointed at wasting his time. 

Conner laughed softly. “No. Standing in a river while your brothers argue and scare away the fish isn’t fun.”

“Can we go for a hike, too?” Jon asked, looking up at his father. “Damian doesn’t want to fish anyway.”

Damian glared at no one in particular. “Not if it involves killing them slowly and painfully.”

“We can keep an eye on them.” Conner offered, glancing at his friend to make sure that was okay. Tim nodded his agreement. 

“Me...hike?” Bizarro looked over his brothers and their friends. 

Conner and Tim both smiled at him. Conner offered his adopted brother a nod. “Yeah, you can come too.”

“Yeah!” Jon smiled as he made a suggestion to his siblings. “We can race up the mountain.”

“Red Him come too?” Bizarro turned to Jason. 

“Yeah, I’ll come.” Jason was already pulling his line in. “I think Damian already scared off all the fish and I prefer hot dogs anyway.”

“I’ll see if I can catch a few for dinner in any case.” Clark commented. “If you boys think you’ll be okay on your own?”

Each of the kids offered assurance that they’d be fine, with varying levels of surprise or disdain at the suggestion they might encounter something they couldn't handle while camping in the woods. 

“I better not hear you fighting.” Bruce warned his kids. 

“Yeah, yeah...” Jason didn’t sound that concerned. “The most we can promise is no hitting.”

“ _If_ that.” Damian added, looking sideways at his big brothers.

“Hit Tim and I’ll stick you up a tree.” Conner warned.

Clark was on that immediately. “Conner, we don’t use our powers for punishments.”

“Where else is he supposed to get a time out?” Conner spread his arms questioningly as he took in the woods around them. 

“I do not get ‘time out’s.” Damian crossed his arms. “I’m not a child.”

“All the more reason why you need to learn not to hit.” Bruce firmly reminded his youngest. “I mean it. _No fighting_.” 

His kids halfheartedly assured him that they were joking and didn’t plan to fight anyway. As they headed off with their friends, Bruce spoke quietly to Clark. “You can hear them on the mountain, right? Even over the river?”

Clark grinned and cast his line. “Yeah, I got ‘em.” Suddenly, he laughed. When Bruce arched a single brow curiously, he explained. “Tim just asked me to tell you that he solved the Winslow murder. It was the valet.”

Bruce smiled as he continued fishing. He’d only asked Tim to do some background checking for him, but he wasn’t surprised his son had gone and solved the case, even while fishing (or pretending to) and listening to his family argue. 

Bruce hadn’t expected to like fishing. He wasn’t great at standing still, unless he was preparing for action. It turned out to be much like laying out a trap for a criminal and waiting for them to take the bait. Only instead of a fistfight followed by an arrest, he simply reeled in a fish. Considering that the waiting was his least favorite part of the job, he didn’t see why it would be peaceful in this instance.

However, knowing his children were having fun (Clark reported what they were doing from time to time) and being able to spend some time as Bruce Wayne without needing to project any persona was a welcome change of pace. It was nice to spend time with his friend without the dire circumstances that often brought them together. He enjoyed Clark’s company when he wasn’t having to remind his friend that moving the Earth was not a viable solution to it being under attack. 

After they’d caught several fish, Bruce and Clark started a fire and made some improvements to their campground. They brought in some logs to sit on in addition to the folding chairs Bruce and his kids had brought. They talked while they started dinner, discussing their kids and jobs. 

Suddenly, Clark grinned. “Middle sons incoming.” 

Bruce could hear the sound of an in-flight hero approaching. Conner landed just outside the camp, carrying Tim piggyback. Both boys were laughing. 

“I can’t believe you just jumped...” Conner said as he put his friend down.

Tim arched a brow. “Why not? I’ve fallen further and I knew you were going to catch me.”

Conner looked back the way they’d come. “How long do you think the others will be?”

“Jason isn’t getting carried unless he needs to be. Damian will be torn between not wanting to lose completely and not wanting to be carried. Jon will probably make the call for him while he’s debating though.” Tim barely appeared to have to put any thought into it as he answered. 

Conner nodded. “Yeah, Jon isn’t great with personal space at the moment.” He grinned, looking back the way they came. “Here they come now.”

Sure enough, just as he finished talking, Jon flew to the camp site, holding onto Damian’s belt to carry him along. Bruce’s youngest was doing his best to look proud and not like he’d been enjoying flying. 

“Hey, no fair!” Jon exclaimed as he touched the ground. “You didn’t say we could use our powers.”

“I didn’t say we _couldn’t_ either.” Conner grinned at his little brother and mussed his hair. “Why did you assume we wouldn’t?”

“Well...” Jon frowned and thought for a second. “Because our friends can’t fly.”

Conner shrugged. “Which is why we carried them.”

“For the record, I _did not_ agree to be carried.” Damian held his head high. “I’m sure I still could have beaten Todd on foot.” He shot a somewhat wary glance at Tim. “And not all of us are suicidal.”

At this point, Bruce was frowning at his second youngest. “Tim, did you jump off the cliff at the other side of the mountain?”

“Conner was there.” Tim explained in lieu of a direct answer. “I was just having fun.”

Most people did not consider falling from a cliff fun, especially when there was nothing to greet you at the bottom but trees and boulders. Bruce had to consider that his children were not like most people. The three of them that were on the trip had best friends who could fly and each of them also had a big brother who was a born acrobat. As long as Tim didn’t make a habit of pulling such stunts, he decided to let it go. 

“We caught some fish.” Clark indicated the food cooking on their camp stove. 

“We killed them quickly and humanely.” Bruce added as he looked at his youngest. Damian still looked unimpressed. 

“I’ll get the frankfurters.” Tim commented before Damian could say anything. “You like kimchi and Kewpie mayo?”

Damian looked...not angry for once. Bruce wouldn’t go so far as to say he looked pleased, but he had definitely been pleasantly surprised by his least favored brother. 

“Yes to both.” Damian sounded borderline suspicious. “You prefer kimchi over sauerkraut?”

Tim returned from the truck were he’d left his food, carrying a jar of kimchi, as well as everything else he’d need to make their dinner. “Yeah. Why?” His tone wasn’t challenging, just conversational.

“I prefer it as well.” Damian looked a little confused. 

Tim did for a moment as well. Then he handed his little brother a camping skewer and nodded toward the fire. “You ever cook frankfurters this way?”

“No.” Damian took the skewer anyway. 

“Me either.” Tim sat beside Conner on one of the logs and started opening the box of frankfurters. “Can’t be too hard, right?”

“I’m sure we can manage.” His brother agreed as he accepted two of the frankfurters before joining Jon on another log. Bruce and Clark sat in two of the chairs. 

Bruce said nothing when each of the boys skewered their frankfurters lengthwise rather than piercing it across the middle, as most did. Clark looked a little curious at the unusual method, but simply smiled and said nothing as well. 

Just then, Jason arrived at the camp, along with Bizarro. 

“Have a nice run?” Tim grinned at his big brother. There was no way he’d made it that far that quickly without running at least halfway. The sweat on Jason’s brow and neck confirmed it, although the whole family ran too much for his breathing to give it away. 

“Well, some of us don’t enjoy being carried.” Jason plopped down on the log beside his little brother. “Hey, is that Kewpie mayo?”

“We have fish, too.” Clark commented as he started serving some up.

Jason thanked him as he took some, then he frowned at his little brothers when he grabbed the mayonnaise. “Why are you two cooking your hot dogs like that?”

“Like what?” Tim continued rotating his frankfurter as he asked, not commenting on the stolen condiment. 

Meanwhile, Damian corrected his big brother’s earlier assessment. “I don’t _like_ being carried. It was simply a more efficient way of returning to camp in time for dinner.”

Tim simply shrugged and slid his frankfurter into a roll. “I like flying with Con. Its fun. You should give it a shot.” As he spoke, Tim handed his big brother some rolls so he could make fish sandwiches.

“Bizarro fly Red Him.” Bizarro offered as he took a plate of fish from his father. 

“Thanks Biz, but I’m not sold on it yet. Maybe later.” Jason took another frankfurter from Tim as his little brother dressed his cooked one. He skewered it the usual way and handed it back to him. “ _There_. That’s how most people roast a hot dog.” 

Both of his little brothers frowned. 

“But it won’t cook as evenly.” Damian pointed out, sounding annoyed. 

“And it has an increased chance of breaking off and falling into the fire.” Tim added, sounding baffled.

Jason face palmed and shook his head. “Fu-” He glanced at Jon and then turned his attention back to Tim. “Uh, Forgot you two never did any normal stuff when you were little.” He looked from one brother to the other. “Littl _er_.” 

Suddenly, he elbowed Tim. “Hey, you bring any cow-free marshmallows that you and Damian can eat?”

“Yeah…?”

“Good, then I’m showing you both how to make s’mores after dinner.” Jason smiled across the fire at Bizarro. “Hey big guy, you ever make s’mores?”

Bizarro appeared to think on that for a second. “Me eat Brown Bat s’mores. Me like them.”

Jason nodded. “Then I’m teaching you to make ‘em too. If you like the boxed stuff, you’ll love the real thing.”

“I brought some s’mores ingredients too.” Clark commented. “Enough for everyone, but I didn’t realize Damian and Tim couldn’t eat them. Sorry guys.”

“That’s fine, I brought plenty for the both of us." Tim assured the older man before glancing at his younger brother. "Dark chocolate too, if you prefer that.” 

Meanwhile, Damian simply looked at Clark with confusion. “Why would I expect you to? You aren’t my father.”

Before Bruce could remark on that, Jon looked at his father with confusion. “There’s cow in marshmallows?”

Bruce made sure not to smirk as Clark had to explain where gelatin came from to his youngest son. After dinner, he discovered that Alfred had also packed everything needed to make s’mores, including gelatin-free marshmallows and dairy-free chocolate. Him, Clark, and Jason showed the others how to make them. The boys all had fun. Their fathers did too. 

After they’d sat around the fire for some time, eating and talking, Clark noticed Jon yawning and stated he thought it was time for bed. 

“Can Damian and I share a tent?” Jon asked right away. Damian looked pleased by the suggestion and turned a questioning gaze toward his father as well. 

“Only if you agree to remain in the tent until sunrise.” Bruce stated. 

“And if you promise to go to sleep reasonably soon.” Clark added.

“Agreed,” Damian stated at the same time Jon said, “Promise!”

Bruce looked at his other sons and Clark’s as well. “How do the rest of us want to handle sleeping arrangements?” They’d brought four two-man tents along between them. Clark and Bruce had each intended to keep their youngest sons with them, in order to keep a better eye on them, and have each of their older boys share a tent. Clearly, the kids had their own plans. 

In the end, Tim and Conner shared one tent while Jason and Bizarro took another. That left Bruce and Clark to share a tent as well. Bruce was glad he’d bought bigger tents than necessary, since Clark was considerably larger than Damian. While they were making sure the camp was secure for the night, they could tell that Damian and Jon had a lantern on night light mode. Bruce wasn’t sure if that was because they were staying up or if Jon needed a light. He decided he’d give them some time and then ask Clark. 

Meanwhile, Bruce caught the occasional hint of a whisper or rustling from Conner and Tim’s tent. That one he decided to just ignore. It wasn’t his place to give Tim a bedtime, considering he was emancipated. 

The sound of Bizarro snoring was already drifting from his shared tent. Clark indicated the tent his eldest was sharing with Jason and dropped his voice. “Will Jason be able to sleep with that? I can trade with him, if its going to keep him up.” Fortunately, they'd put them in the other tent Bruce had brought, so it was large enough for their largest sons, and would be large enough for Clark, if they made the suggested swap.

But it was unnecessary. “Noises don’t keep him up. He’s used to the sounds of the city.” Bruce didn’t point out that the awkwardness of trying to sleep in a tent with his father would be more likely to keep his second son awake. 

“Jon, bed time.” Clark called gently before he was ready for bed. He and Bruce waited until they saw the light go off in their youngest sons’ tent before settling into their own. 

Bruce waited until Damian was likely asleep and kept his voice low to ensure his son wouldn’t hear. “About all the yelling earlier… Damian can be a bit...overzealous. I’m glad he’s learning some compassion toward animals, but trying to get that to cross over to humans is turning out to be something of a challenge.”

“I know it wasn’t anything personal, Bruce.” Clark kept his voice equally low. “And believe me, I’ve had a couple incidents with Bizarro that I’m sure rival anything Damian’s done.”

“He’s tried to murder Tim four times.” That was Bruce's biggest source of shame and disappointment. Both emotions were aimed at himself because he hadn't stopped it and didn't know how to do so in a way that took care of both his youngest sons.

“Okay, maybe they don’t quite rival anything Damian’s done.” Clark amended his previous statement. “But I still understand trying to work with a challenging child.”

Bruce sighed at the understatement. “I think we’re past that now -that level of violence- but I don’t know how to make him see that people have value. That they deserve a certain level of respect. He can get away with it now, people expect a certain amount of haughtiness and rudeness from a rich teenager. When he’s older though, I worry he’s going to end up without anyone in his corner.”

There was a moment of silence as Clark took that in. “I can see the fear, and I can relate to it. But despite him being so difficult -and even trying to murder his brother- Jason and Tim are still here. They could easily have begged off the weekend and avoided him. And even though they aren’t here, you know Dick and Cassandra will always be there for him. He’s never going to have no one; not as long as his brothers and sister are alive.”

Bruce considered his friend’s words. He realized he was right. It would have been completely understandable for Tim to decide he wanted nothing to do with Damian, especially after Bruce died and Dick took over. It would be understandable for Jason or any of his other siblings to avoid their troublesome brother. Bruce knew they had more than enough problems without having to deal with their angry, bratty brother. 

But they were still there. They were trying to make it work, trying to have a relationship with him. They were even trying to help him become a better person. Clearly, his kids weren’t going to be scared off that easily. 

He hadn’t quite realized, right until he started talking to Clark, how worried he was about Damian. 

For a long time, many of the people in Bruce’s life worried that he was going to end up all alone. He wouldn't be surprised if some them _still_ felt that way. But he wasn’t alone. He never had been and never would be. He had his family. First it was just Alfred, then Dick came along, and now he had enough children that it was a challenge to keep up with each of them at times. 

He’d been concerned that Damian truly would be alone when he was older. That he would drive anyone who might care away. That he would only grow more rude and hostile. 

He hadn’t considered that if his other kids were going to jump ship, they’d have done it already. Instead, they seemed determined to steer the thing safely to shore. If anyone could manage that, Bruce would bet on his children. 

He smiled in the dark of the small tent. “You’re right.”

Clark only made a pleased sound that Bruce had come to that conclusion. 

Bruce didn’t thank his friend and Clark didn’t expect any words of gratitude. They helped each other when they could. They supported each other when they needed it. They advised each other when it was warranted. 

They were friends.

And their children were friends too. With that in mind, knowing none of them would ever be truly alone again, Bruce went to sleep. Clark did too. 

They slept through the night and awoke to the sounds of their children talking, playing, and making breakfast. It was a good feeling. Bruce was glad Clark had suggested the trip. 

Even when Jason put a fish in Damian’s sleeping bag. Even when Damian retaliated by putting a snake in Jason and Bizarro’s tent. Even when Bizarro burned a hole in the tent when he decided to use his flame breath to kill the snake. Even when Jon accidentally froze a section of the camp ground trying to put out the fire his brother started. Even when they realized Conner and Tim had split during the chaos and later found them eating scones up a dangerously high tree. 

They tried fishing again. They went on a few hikes. They played, they fought, they helped each other. 

They were a family. 

In the end, it was everything Bruce could have hoped for and everything he had ever wanted.


End file.
